07/03/21 Site Is Not Aging Well

Had to take out some old code that I really don't want to spend the time fixing. I told my hosting provider to go ahead with a server migration. I knew it was going to break a lot of stuff. It happens and it'll force me to take a look at stuff and either update it or drop it. Think a lot of stuff will need to go.

03/16/17 Profiles and Ranking Pages Up

A couple of tweaks to my web server and some PHP code and profiles have been ported over from really old ASP crap. Some of the stuff I wrote in C# is still running. It's been bothering me for a very long time and since I couldn't play racquetball tonight, I wanted to do the next best thing and work on the site.

I wasn't going to spend a lot of time, since the whole site needs to be torn down and rebuilt. It just kept bothering me and gaining interest until I needed to put in the work and pay it off. Still don't have time to dedicate to leagues, but I miss the process and the battles.

07/08/16 Profiles and Other ASP Crap Down

Wanted to look up a spelling of someone's name and it didn't work locally. I was ok, I am running Apache locally with Vagrant. No problem. I go to the production site and it doesn't work either. Looks like support for classic ASP was dropped and I didn't learn about it until now. That sucks. Not sure what I am going to do. I really just need to rebuild the entire site from the ground up, but this was also a major feature of the site. Anyway just wanted to report it here.

06/30/16 Couple of Updates

Been working on the blog since the last entry from 4/2015. Time flies. Don't really want to update this page with my inconsistent play. So let's see I don't play at the Cook/Douglas rec center anymore since they knocked it down to like two courts that you can't reserve.

So been playing over at Busch. Rutgers has a Racquetball team, which is really cool. Rob ran a league and tournament based on my format and he is also running the Busch ladder. So might be asking where does that leave me?

Well I recently listened to a TED talk that stated you are less likely to accomplish your goals if you tell someone about it, because your brain gets tricked into thinking it already happened. So I don't feel like writing it here...well supposed to write it in a way that doesn't give any satisfaction. I am going to work on improving the ELO calculator. Recently someone donated $5 to the project. So feel obligated and excited to work on it.

As much as I enjoyed running the leagues and more importantly participating. I just don't have the schedule anymore. Maybe by the next update when the kids are like five years older. ;-)

04/11/15 Played Racquetball and I Survived.

Well during my boys' spring break I went to the Rutgers Racquetball Ladder on Busch to see old friends and play a few games. I saw some old friends like Jerald, Rob, Sinski, and Sol. Played some cut throat and a singles. At first I was really hesistant, but started to trust my knee a little. Some shots I hit and others were really off or skipped. I still had a great time.

There's been a lot of old friends that planned their return to racquetball and I tried to learn from their mistakes. I didn't want to go all out like I was in shape or didn't stop playing during the past sixteen months. I wanted to be patient with myself and understand I am not going to hit or score points like I used to. A lot of drive serves were long. Also didn't want to make excuses and to push myself a bit.

It's hard to imagine our little racquetball group smaller than it was. There's a lot of work to do to get things going again, but also a lot of obstacles in the way. I'm just working too hard, too often, on too many things to slice off any more time.

03/04/15 My Still Pending Return to Racquetball...and 2015 to Date

The past few months haven't been easy either. A few weeks after my last post in October my Dad became sick and went into the Hospital. He was treated and eventually released to a rehab place, but wasn't eating very well and had other conditions that made his recovery difficult. On February 12th, he passed away. Six months to the day that my Mom died.

Sorting things out with his estate has been a challenge and seems as I get close to resolving something another two things pop up to get in the way. Thankfully my family has been there to help me. Services for my Dad were very nice, since he was a veteran of the Korean war they played taps, folded a flag, and thanked me for his service. I broke down and tried to be strong.

I managed to play racquetball at Split Rock with my wife and boys and then again a few weeks later with just Jason. I need to spend some good old fashion time with weights at the gym to start building up what I lost. Anyway I hope get things in order and start pushing on things again.

Happy Birthday to my wife. I love you since it would be that much harder without you.

10/11/14 My Pending Return to Racquetball...and 2014 to Date

Anyway I know it's been dead around here, been posting to my blog but been a long time since I updated this page. So most people probably didn't dig any deeper.

So to recap 2014. I did a stupid thing at a Rutgers Tournament in January and played without my braces. It was then an old injury (torn ACL) finished off my miniscus. I did what any self-respecting racquetball player would do, buy a brace, take some pain-relievers, and finish the tournament. After a devastating doubles defeat...I rested, but it didn't work. I saw a Sports Medicine Doctor and after an MRI. I had a bucket handle tear of my miniscius and a chronically torn ACL. I did some pre-surgery PT, had surgery around April and post-op PT since. I was discharged on Thursday!

Walking around with crutches and going through the excercises to get back to normal seemed like it took forever and had it's fair share of discomfort and pain. Think things have changed at Cook/Douglas and they got rid of at least one court. Been in contact with some people I used to play with. Seems like be starting over again from near zero again.

My Mom passed away in August and pretty much had to handle everything for my Dad. She suffered from dementia and toward the end was difficult. Anyway I did the best I could for her and work was understanding. Been trying to help my Dad, but he can be pretty stubborn. Yes, I know the apple didn't fall far from the tree.

My boys are doing ok in School. They hate it, but they keep at it. Same goes for Karate. Matt earned his purple belt. So that was a good ego boost.

Been working full-time with a couple hours at a part-time to help make ends meet. I offically dropped stringing from the site was too much work for very little reward.

2014 hasn't been a great year, but making incremental changes to get to a better place. I get fitted for my brace on Tuesday, so having racquetball again should help turn things around!

07/31/13 2013 League Final Results

Well we had our fair share of problems this League, but I'm glad it's in the books and we were able to finish with some Summer left. Thanks to everyone who particpated and thanks for sticking with me and the League.

Ten leagues is a pretty good accomplishment and over the years a lot of people have played and come back League after League. I consider everyone in the league a friend. We celebrate our wins, lament our loses, and play our best for each other. What better definition of a friend?

We have a few more pictures, results, and some more news on the League page.

05/04/13 Long Overdue Updates!

I can't believe it's been about seven months without an update to this page. Between a new business, Ambient Rehabilitation LLC, stringing racquets, running a League, family stuff, and a lot of things at work. I'm pretty much on overload constantly. Of course, the second I wake up my older son, Jason, gets out of bed too and I hear the siren sound of Minecraft tempting me in the background. So need to turn on some music and resist for now.

We had some problems this League both with the administration, some players, and that the gym we meet at is closing soon for the Summer. The problems with the players was one of the most difficult situations I've been in ever. Looking back I didn't handle it too well and that's on me, but they caused repetative problems to the point it was documented by the gym staff and that's on them. So I was told to eject them. Anyway there was a lot of flame mail about it on both sides and it's done.

Anyway that resulteidentify.ee: no decode delegate for this image format `C:/Users/joe/AppData/Local/Temp/magick-2688HnU4CNXqcnPf' @ error/constitute.c/ReadImage/552.d in a knee-jerk reaction from the gym and all the slack we enjoyed over the years was instantly gone. Polciies were recited and enforced and all the guests to the gym had problems. We have to sign a form for guests saying that we're responsbile for them and their actions. We had to meet our guest players outside and walk in together. Think things are finally getting better, but we lost a lot of ground and another long term player as a result.

Now we need to move the League after the 18th because the gym is going to be closed for the entire Summer! Anyway I was hoping our tenth league was going to be awesome a lot of fun for our players. Turns out to be one of the most challenging. I thought about just packing things up and refunding everyone's money, but that's not fair to the players and to racquetball. So let's keep going! Seems like we're losing like 12-1, but we can still grind it out!

12/08/12 Sign-Up for Our 10th Racquetball League and Tournament

So far we have seven people signed up for our 10th Racquetball League. We're looking for new players who think they have what it takes to play in our League. Take a look at our League FAQ, our past Leagues, and once you have all the warm and fuzzies you need...sign-up. For $10, plus guest fees, we run a great league for the money.

We've been tweaking a few things around here to get prepared for the League, so keep up with the League news for the latest info on start times and new features.

05/17/12 Warren Lim Takes First in B/C!

Both guys were working hard and I only caught a couple of minutes. I didn't want to spook anyone and One Lee was already kind of watching. Think both guys left everything on the court. Warren inched the victory: 6, (13), and 9.

Kicked both guys out of B/C and up to A's for next League, think the have worked hard and deserve the upgrade. Warren's power has increased dramatically this League and can rifle shots on his forehand close to 100 MPH. Claudio's signature "W" shot did some damage and his endurance on the court is one of the best this League.

Keep working hard guys over the Summer. Claudio also said I lost weight, hopefully I can keep it going.

05/17/12 Ronny Choy Takes Third in Elites

Regretfully didn't catch any of the games between Abe and Ronny, but seemed pretty intense and some how Abe was pelted a couple of times. With Ronny's shots...I would not want to be pelted once let a lone a couple of times. Ronny finished third with 12, (11), and 3. Think I was very lucky to make it past him in our match.

Ronny and I have been playing some Doubles whenever we get a chance. He's plays a good doubles game and his forehand is near 100 MPH and over also. Earning first seed in League play is a great accomplishment and running a half-marathon is another. Abe has been in my Leagues for a number of years and I have a lot of respect for him as a player. Think he was caught not practicing a couple of times and wasn't prepared for some of the competition. Think he'll return with a vengenace next league. The reason there's an Elites this league is because of him.

05/10/12 Congratulations to Vinny Liguori (Left) in Elites

I've known Vinny for a couple of years already and his dedication to training and working out is pretty impressive. He did a Tough Mudder and who knows what else. On the racquetball court he's equally aggressive and dives and goes after every shot. So when I saw that I was facing him in the finals my game plan was to keep it simple. I posted on Twitter that it's going to be the Textbook vs. the Manimal and it was pretty much true.

It's been about nine years since I was in a Singles final, so I think nerves got the better of me in the last game. Anyway was a great match and personally it was a privilege to face someone that wanted to win as badly as I did. Vinny won 12, (5), and 4. I'm looking forward to the next time we meet on the court.

12/23/11 New King of the ELO Rankings. Abe Pollak

With a League win over Ben Gleb (1 and 2) Abe Pollak passed long time rival Nick Holerca.

10/07/11 Do you know what time it is?

It's time to play the Game!! We just started the sign-up for our ninth Racquetball League and Tournament, we play over at Rutgers Cook/Douglas in New Brunswick New Jersey. Our goal is to bring more people to Racquetball and have a good time. If that sounds for you then check out our League News for sign-up and other information.

06/16/11 Color Scheme Improvement

I have two monitors and the font and colors in one looked horrible. So lightened up the gray a bit and used Typesetter to improve some of my CSS. The whole site needs to be stripped down and rebuilt, problem is the site is pretty big and still has some even older pages. I really need to work on some infrastructure changes.

06/02/11 Congratulations to Frank Cai (Right) in B's

Frank Cai (right) won B's in a three game nail-bitter against Robert Muldowney (8), 1, and 10. Both Frank and Robert are new to the League and did a great job. Now all this is left is third place trophies. Ben vs. Warren in B's and Frank Cai vs. Joseph Delgado in A's. I haven't seen Ben and Warren on the courts in a while, so expect they need to tool-up before playing.

I'm always in a constant need to tool-up and expect to play Frank on Tuesday or next week. Rob and I are starting a plan to beat Abe and Dave next League. More about that and updated drawsheets.

05/15/11 Congratulations to Abe Pollak in A's

Abe (left) defeated Dave Pollak in straight games 11 and 6 to win the 8th EQP Racquetball League and Tournament (A Division). He went undefeated in League play and straight through the Tournament draw to rack up eleven consecutive wins and putting a lot of pressure on the top two ranked ELO Players of all time. More...

Revised this on 5/19/11 when Abe and Dave showed up to play. Abe told me that Dave had the trophies with him. I pulled out the iPhone and said let's go.

03/19/11 Cook/Douglas League Tournament Draws Posted

It's time to really play the game! Check out the tournament draws for A's and B-C's in the League News. In the first round of A's, we get right to it with Joe Delgado fighting to hold his 3rd seed against Rob Muldowney. Also Frank Cai against Warren Lim, where Frank needs a repeat performance to advance. Wonder if Lim made some additions to his "House" in time.

In B-C, things slow down a bit with Rob Muldowney vs. Ed Lorne. But in the mix, there's John Marron vs. Benjamin Gelb. Can John deliver vengeance against Ben and face Frank Cai (who he took a game from) again in the semi's? Maybe John should borrow the Gearbox GB 75 Racquet again.

Hope you can follow along. It's our Championships and something we have all worked about six months for.

02/26/11 NJAR Ladies Day at Woodbridge

Hope you can join the NJAR Ladies Day at Woodbridge on Sunday, March 6. Can download the flyer and hope all the ladies can come out and play some racquetball to grow the sport.

01/13/11 New RSS Feed

Changing the way RSS Feeds are built on my site. Instead of adding entries by hand working on classes to do the heavy lifting for me from different sources be it comments, news, or just links I want to share. Also wanted to have one site wide feed, so moved things to the company RSS feed. Please update your bookmarks and feed readers.

01/07/11 Happy New Year...a week late.

Starting off the year with a new blog entry. We'll be restarting the League once Cook/Douglas reopens on the 17th. My company published ELO Calculator for Mac. Still plenty to fix around here and been adding cards to my box to get them cooking.